Journal #16: Do You Think Child Stars Have It Rough?


Many people in today's world dream of becoming famous. This group of people do not see the true nature of it. Becoming famous is a double edged sword. Though fame comes with many perks, celebrities must sacrifice a lot to become famous. When a child becomes famous, the number of sacrifices that must be made heightens to an extreme amount. Child stars' lives are a tornado that continues spinning until the day they die. Child stars must sacrifice a good education and privacy to become famous which hurts them later in life.

Schooling is a big issue with children who are famous. They have to have a balance between schooling and filming. Filming can take many hours to finish, so it is extremely difficult to fit education into a celebrities schedule especially a child's. A child does not ask for this dilemma, and they are usually born into this busy lifestyle without a choice. Child stars will usually have private tutors. Tutors can teach somebody a lot, but tutoring comes with sacrifices as well. For instance, tutoring does not include the social aspect of schooling. Their only friends include other child stars, directors, and crew members. In Michael Jackson's case, he was raised as a celebrity his entire life; thus, he was not allowed to experience the social aspects of a "normal" school. Education for child stars is awful but it must be sacrificed to become famous.

Fame comes with all of the paparazzi as well, but the paparazzi takes away a child star's privacy. They follow the star anywhere and everywhere he or she goes. As a child star grows up, they have the pressure of acting and the constant stream of press watching his or her every move. A child's emotions are all over the place, and to add all of the stress of acting and paparazzi is cruel. If they make one mistake, then it sticks with them for their entire lifetime. Even if they act their best, paparazzi warp stories to get the best drama in their lives. Children should not be put through this type of stress, but people usually do not see this side of fame.

Child stars must sacrifice a good education and privacy to become famous which hurts them in the future. Fame is not glamorous or appealing at all when one thinks about all of the sacrifices they have to make. The fame and fortune are merely a disguise for the true horror that comes with fame. A lot of people in today's society think it would be amazing to become famous, but they do not realize how wretched fame really is. Becoming famous has some perks, but do they compensate for all of the sacrifices that must be made?